by Ivan Kal
Ashara looked at Kyarra, seeing the frustration in her eyes. She could understand the amount of pressure that Kyarra was under, especially now as the pass was starting to open up. Tourran was a rich kingdom, but was nonetheless far smaller than the Lashian Empire. It had remained safe only because the threat of the Eternal Soul and her fragment of power. But now, it looked like the Emperor no longer cared. It seemed like he was willing to pit his own fragment-bearers against Kyarra even if that meant risking bringing about great destruction. After all, the last time two fragment-bearers had engaged in direct combat, the world got the Shattered Isles.
Finally, Kyarra looked at Master Jeressi, who was sitting next to her. “Any word from your contacts in the Free Cities?”
“I have not received any notes informing me of changes in plans. The mage Masters should arrive in a month’s time,” Master Jeressi said.
Ashara caught the grimace on Master Galera’s face, which was understandable from her point of view. Master Galera was a guild mage, and they considered all mages not trained at their academy to be rogues, Master Jeressi included. But the court mage was from the Free Cities, across the sea on the southern continent, and the rules for mages there were far different than they were here.
Kyarra caught the look on Master Galera’s face as well, and she narrowed her eyes at the guild mage. “Do you have anything to add, Master Galera?”
“No, Your Majesty,” she responded quickly. She had tried to talk Kyarra out of hiring mages from across the sea in the same way as she had mercenaries, but the guild mage had quickly realized that there was little she could say to change Kyarra’s mind. The Mages Guild was unwilling to stand up to the Lashian Empire, and they did not yet believe in the threat of the Arashan, and so Kyarra had no choice but to find help elsewhere.
“Good,” Kyarra said, then she abruptly stood up. “That concludes our meeting.”
Ashara watched as Kyarra left the room, Master Jeressi following closely behind her. The Commander and the guild mage remained for a few moments, but then they too left, leaving Ashara alone. Once again, Ashara had seen little but a repetition of previous meetings. She had been invited to attend as Kyarra’s adviser, but her opinion had not been asked. Aside from asking where Vin was, Kyarra had ignored Ashara.
What hurt the most was that Kyarra wasn’t even doing it on purpose. True, in the early days of Kyarra taking the throne, she had asked advice from Ashara almost constantly. Quickly enough, however, Ashara’s own inexperience had become apparent. She knew much about trade, and she could contribute in such matters, but there were others who were better, more experienced than her. Her voice slowly became less and less heard in such meetings, until Ashara became nothing but an observer. Even Vin, who was from another world entirely, could contribute—he knew much about the Arashan, and his experience in fighting mages had been invaluable.
But Ashara was nothing. She didn’t even know why Kyarra kept her around. She had nothing to contribute; she was not like Vin and Kyarra, she had no power by herself. Yes, she had gained a title and land in Tourran, but all of that had come from Kyarra. She had nothing that was hers. She didn’t belong. Even after everything that had happened, she was still not fitting in.
She looked around the empty room as she sat there alone, forgotten.
CHAPTER THREE
KYARRA
Present
Kyarra Con Aroch, Eternal Soul, Queen of Tourran, stood on a balcony of her palace. Even after so many years of wearing the crown, of living in the palace, she could not help but feel like an impostor. She had never been meant to rule; her life was to be in service to the royal family, a protector of the city. Yet she had ended up on the throne, with a crown given to her by the people themselves. It was a great honor, and a responsibility that she had given all of herself to.
Before her stretched Tourran, the city positioned against the mountainside of the Bronze Rock Mountains range and the bay that led into the Silent Sea on the other. Behind her stretched the valley of Tourran, her kingdom. Tourran was a small kingdom, but a wealthy one. It was powerful, mostly because of its wealth, but also because of the Eternal Soul. Kyarra herself had been a weapon of Tourran, a bearer of a fragment of power. Her soul was bound to the cycle of reincarnation by the act of her first life, Vardun Con Aroch, and she was trapped inside the city of Tourran with spells that prevented her from ever leaving it, until the spell was broken by the deaths of the royal family. Her soul was still bound to the cycle—she had checked—but she could now leave the city.
When she had been a child, trapped behind the walls of the Con Aroch estate, she had dreamed of being free; of wandering the world, visiting new and strange places. She had left Tourran only once, when the Lashian Empire had invaded, when her power had been bound and she had failed in her duty. Every moment after that she had spent trying to get back, to retake the city and help the people of Tourran. Only long after she had returned and then been given the crown had she realized that she had, if for just a moment, been free. She could’ve gone anywhere in the world, leaving the city that had been her prison, and instead she had run straight back. She didn’t regret that decision, however. She had a responsibility to people of Tourran.
But it had never been her intention to be its ruler.
She looked at the buildings, looking so small from her high balcony. Beyond the walls was a large construction project, nearly finished: a secondary wall, turned toward the east and the valley, was an additional defense in case of an invasion. Its walls had been built with great ward stones designed by Kyarra, along with Master Galera of the Mages Guild and Master Jeressi. For now, the people in the streets were all walking around living their lives in peace. The short-lived occupation by the Lashian Empire was in the past for them, an inconvenience. To Kyarra, however, the Lashian Empire was a constant worry, for reasons no ordinary citizen would ever believe. An image of a man with brown eyes and black hair, young, but with a weight behind his eyes… She shook her head and banished the thoughts of Vin. She did not want to think on their parting; it had been hard enough without her revisiting it and trying to imagine if she could’ve done something different.
Still, no matter what she said, she did believe that the Lashian Empire and the Arashan were a threat—and she had been preparing accordingly.
“Your Majesty.” The voice made her turn around and find herself looking at a plump older woman: her aide, Reta. “They are ready for you.”
Kyarra sighed and stepped inside, following her aide as they made their way through the palace to the meeting room. Six guards dressed in royal blue stepped behind her. Kyarra had tried to get rid of her entourage for years, but her advisers and the Commander of the Guard would hear nothing of it. Kyarra had tried to explain that as a fragment-bearer there was very little danger to herself, and any threat that posed sufficient danger would be great enough that her guards would not even slow it down. But since the former king had been assassinated, she had to live with the entourage, if only for their peace of mind.
In truth, she had done much to increase and strengthen her defenses, taking what she had learned from the Mages Guild representative and Master Jeressi, as well as her own library left to her by her former lives. She had hundreds of wards all around her at all times, and there was very little that could get through them. That was not even counting the wards on the palace, all of which having been upgraded several times over the years. Still, she had managed to reduce the guard to only six.
They reached the meeting room and Kyarra walked in. Everyone in the room stood up immediately as she was announced.
“Her Majesty, Queen Kyarra Con Aroch!”
Kyarra made her way to the head of the long table and took her seat, casting her eyes at the assembled group. Seven heads of the noble houses sat toward the end of the table, as well as two heads of smaller noble houses that had earned the right to sit at this council. Then, closer to her were the two mages: Master Jeressi, the adviser to the late King, and no
w hers, and Master Galera sent by the Council of Mages. The relationship between the Academy and Tourran had become much better following the Lashian invasion and Kyarra’s ascent to the throne. At the time, Master Galera had been instrumental in getting back the control of the city following the battle. As she had been a witness to the attack by the Lashians and their Arashan allies, she had spoken out on Kyarra’s behalf with the Council.
The relationship between the Academy and Tourran was not really much more than a neutral acceptance. After all, they still haven’t forgotten that Vardun had stolen the staff of storms from them, and that it was in Kyarra’s possession. She was certain that if they had a way of breaking the bond between a fragment and its bearer, they would’ve already asked for its return. But sadly for them, while only death could break such a bond, the fact that Kyarra was bound to the cycle of reincarnation meant that they could never retrieve it. The fact that they were willing to talk with her, and that they had allowed Master Galera to remain as an adviser, meant a lot.
Still, Kyarra knew that in practice it did not mean too much, as she had quickly learned.
Commander Atiok of the Guard took his place to the left and a step behind Kyarra’s chair, and with a gesture she motioned the rest to take their seats.
“We may begin. What is the first matter on the schedule?” Kyarra asked. She already knew what it was going to be, of course, but these little dances were what she was supposed to do as Queen. She hated it, but it was the way of things.
“Ahem…” the spindly man near the end of the table began. Kastor Vorran belonged to one of the oldest and most influential houses, at least now that the noble houses that had betrayed Tourran to the Lashians no longer existed. Kastor had gained a lot of wealth and influence in the aftermath of the Lashian invasion, and while Kyarra was quite certain that he had not been conspiring with the Lashians, she still didn’t like the man.
“We would like to bring to your attention the matter of the mercenary armies,” Kastor said quickly, one hand playing with his gray beard.
Kyarra fought the instinct to glare at the man, but it was hard. This was the third time this year that this question had been brought up to her, even though she had made her opinion clear.
Kastor looked at her, but when she didn’t respond, he glanced nervously to the other people present. Finally, seeing no other choice, he continued speaking. “It is our opinion that we should cut down the number of mercenaries we employ. There is simply no need for them.”
If looks could turn people to ice, then Kastor would’ve been frozen instantly. Kyarra glared at the man. “The Lashians are still a threat. Or have you forgotten about their invasion of our kingdom?”
“The invasion was a regrettable incident, treasonous both on our side and theirs. But they have already paid reparations to us for the unlawful attack, and they have not threatened our lands since,” Kastor said with a slimy smile.
If Kyarra wasn’t completely certain that he wasn’t a traitor, she would’ve executed him by now. Sadly, he was simply a greedy little bastard. Kyarra glanced around, looking at the other people in the room, trying to see their opinions on their faces. The fact that some even believed the lies that Emperor Erius Tou Denorof had spouted about the invasion made Kyarra’s blood boil, but there was little she could do about it. Barely a year after the invasion of Tourran, the Emperor had finally spoke against Kyarra’s accusations before the Council of Mages and the nations of the world. The head of a “traitor”—a general who had supposedly executed the attack on Tourran all by himself, against the Emperor’s orders—had been given as scapegoat.
It was a fiction, of course. Everyone knew it, and everyone accepted it. As if Kyarra’s testimony meant nothing, the presence of Erius’s cousin Grand Marshal Darvo Tou Benerof had been ignored completely. Erius spoke, and the world cowered, willing to bend instead of holding him accountable for breaking dozens of agreements. Perhaps if the Lashian Empire had managed to keep Tourran, the world would’ve acted. The Kingdom of Amaranthine might’ve responded with their armies. But instead, with Tourran retaken, they all chose to ignore the offense and avoid war. Her warnings about the Arashan and their coming invasion fell on deaf ears, as there was no proof other than words of a single man and eyewitness reports of Darji mages. In the end, the Arashan were attributed to being rogue mages, the possible existence of invaders from another world unlikely according to the greatest mages on the continent. They knew nothing of such magic, and with no further proof of other worlds, there was nothing that Kyarra could do. Even Master Galera, who believed her, couldn’t do anything. Kyarra quickly learned that politics of the continent relied on rule of the strong, and lies that all could live with.
A lie became the truth, and the world continued on. There was no invasion from the Lashian Empire, no sign of the Arashan, and Kyarra could do nothing about them.
“Yet,” Kyarra began, “the Black Sun Legions remain near the pass, reinforced with a training Legion. Thirty thousand troops ready to spill through and into our lands.”
“There are no signs to indicate that the Lashian Legions are preparing for an attack. Their presence is most likely simply in response to our own reinforcement of the pass. There have been no hostile moves by them in years,” Kastor explained.
“Their very presence is a threat. This is the way that Erius operates. He hadn’t been conquering new territories for years only to stop now,” Kyarra argued.
Kastor waved her words aside. “It is known that Erius has his sights on the east, that he would not dare attack Tourran. Amaranthine would never stand for it.”
Kyarra clenched her armrests. He already did, and Amaranthine did nothing, you fool! she thought, but she kept those words to herself. “The fact remains that we were attacked once, and we were unprepared. I will not allow Tourran to be weak again.”
“Of course, Your Majesty. I and everyone here agrees with that sentiment wholeheartedly. However, keeping so many mercenary armies on payroll is draining the crown’s coffers. There is no need for them. We have the pass secured, and Commander Atiok has increased the guard fivefold,” Kastor said, with a nod at the commander standing next to Kyarra.
She didn’t respond immediately. She knew that much of what he was saying was true. They had built fortifications in the pass, towers, and a gate that prevented entry, and the Guard had been increased and trained well. Tourran now had a small Mages Guild, and about a dozen guild mages stationed there, not counting the Mage Masters of the Free Cities who Kyarra had hired to work on Tourran’s defenses. The mercenary armies didn’t have much to do, really—she had hired them when they had feared an attack by the Lashian Legions. It was a good job for them, as they gained gold for doing very little aside from patrolling her lands and training with the Guard. She knew that her nobles had a point, as keeping almost five thousand mercenary troops in her lands seemed unnecessary—unless one believed that the Lashians had every intention of invading again, and perhaps with the aid of the Arashan invaders this time.
“Your Majesty,” Kastor spoke again, and Kyarra realized that she hadn’t responded. “We understand that it is your job to protect us, just as it is ours to advise you. Perhaps you might consider simply cutting the mercenaries to, let’s say…half their current numbers?”
No matter her dislike of the man, Kyarra was aware that he truly believed in Tourran. That he was loyal to her, and that in his mind he was simply advising her to the best of his ability. She sighed, as she knew that there were other nobles who believed the same as Kastor, and their voices were becoming louder. “I will consider your advice, Lord Vorran.”
Kastor bowed his head in agreement. Kyarra caught the small smile of victory on his lips before he cleared his face, but she gave him no reproach for it. Setting the matter aside, they turned to the other matters. The second wall was nearly finished, and the Mage Masters were laying in the additional wards on top of the battlements, and Kyarra listened as Lady Gerison, who oversaw the construction
, listed the additional costs.
Kyarra sat patiently as they went through the scheduled topics, and gave her opinion where warranted. Tourran was, she knew, doing better than it ever had. Their mines were churning out silver at an increased rate, their merchant fleets were bringing in a small fortune, and the people were prospering. There was really no reason for Kyarra to be worried.
The only problem was that she just couldn’t shake a terrible feeling that things were about to go very wrong.
CHAPTER FOUR
VIN
Present
Vin gripped the reins of his horse tighter as they came to a stop. He wasn’t really paying attention to what was happening around him, leaving Teressa and Jirross to guide him. His mind was far behind them, looking with his net. They had set a quick pace, enough that they had stayed ahead of the group pursuing them so far. But just barely—the group would catch up with them in perhaps an hour. Vin didn’t know much about horses, but they had ran their mounts nearly to death from exhaustion in order to stay ahead, as their pursuers had much better ones. With Vin’s sensory net, they had been able to stay ahead, stopping to rest their horses when their pursuers stopped, pushing their horses just a bit too hard in order to stay ahead.
But now, it no longer mattered. They had reached the port town and they made their way through to the harbor immediately, nearly running down people walking through the streets.
As they reached the harbor, Vin turned most of his attention to his surroundings, keeping only a tiny fraction of his mind on their pursuers. Vin looked around the harbor and quickly found the sleek form of the Norvus. Immediately, they headed that way and they climbed up the plank and onto the ship, leaving their horses unattended at the pier.
